Various disposable or single-use personal care cleaning articles are known and available today. Such articles are commonly used to remove dirt, oils, make-up as well as other undesirable matter from the body. In addition to basic personal cleaning, articles are also available that provide a deeper cleaning of the skin (epidermis) and that more effectively remove dead skin cells (corneocytes) from the outer most layer of the skin (stratus corneum). This process of removing dead skin cells from the outer most layer of the skin is commonly referred to as exfoliating. One of the perceived benefits from exfoliating is that a user's exfoliated skin appears fresh and healthy after the outer dull looking layer of dead skin cells are removed. The skin is constantly replenishing itself and producing new layers of dead skin cells. Thus, exfoliation is a process frequently utilized by many users. Exfoliating has long been accomplished through the use of relatively abrasive material such as a loofa or pumice. However, such highly abrasive materials can cause irritation and discomfort for many users. In addition, such traditional articles often fail to adequately remove residue from the skin formed or liberated in the process.
Less abrasive cleansing articles are known such as through the use of polymeric netting or sheet materials having polymer nodules thereon; by way of example such materials are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,594,970 to Benge and US2003/0031703 McMeekin et al. In addition, there also exist two-sided cleanings pads that enable the user to choose between relatively rough and smooth sides. Examples of such two-sided pads are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,744,149 Girardot, U.S. Pat. No. 7,488,697 Louis Dit Picard et al., and US2007/0098768 Close et al. However, the desired level of roughness or mechanical scrubbing action an article provides can vary significantly from user to user. In addition, the desired level of cleaning and/or exfoliating may frequently vary according to the user's experience on a given day; e.g. intense exercise, exposure to high levels of dirt or grime, sun exposure, the use of certain types of make-up and so forth. Furthermore, many individual users have what are perceived to be localized problem areas and therefore desire differing levels of roughness or mechanical scrubbing action for different regions of their face or body. Thus, existing pads fail to provide the wide range of variation and control desired by many users.
Therefore, there exists a need for a single-use or limited-use cleaning article that provides the user with the ability to easily obtain numerous different levels of roughness and/or mechanical scrubbing action. Further, there exists a need for a cleaning article that both effectively dislodges foreign or unwanted matter and that also effectively removes the same from the user's skin. Still further, there exists a need for such a pad with improved handleability in order to enable the user to fully utilize the pad and more easily achieve the desired treatment.